Follow the self proclaimed "Clot Buster" triathlete on his quest to raise funds for the NATIONAL BLOOD CLOT ALLIANCE- STOPTHECLOT.org
Come along for the SWIM, the RIDE, the RUN, and everything in between!
Learn more about blood clots and blood clotting disorders at www.STOPTHECLOT.org

Get YOUR very own CLOT BUSTER #StopTheClot polka-dots

The "CLOT BUSTERs RACING to STOP THE CLOT" RUNNING SHIRT + TRIATHLON TOP + CYCLING JERSEY + PERFORMANCE TRUCKER HAT & PERFORMANCE VISOR!!!PLEASE HELP US CELEBRATE CLOT SURVIVORS and spread awareness about blood clots and blood clotting disorders.If you are aCLOT SURVIVOR you need polka-dots to inspire others and CELEBRATE that you are Survivor.If you are aFAMILY MEMBER or FRIEND of a blood clot survivor you need polka-dots to spread the word, create awareness andCELEBRATE your Survivor's Accomplishments!(If you don't see the size you need we can make special arrangements so just ask @ CLOTBUSTERPOLKADOTS@gmail.com)

CLOT BUSTER #StopTheClot PERFORMANCE TRUCKER HAT

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CLOT BUSTER #StopTheClot PERFORMANCE VISOR

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CLOT BUSTER #StopTheClot PERFORMANCE RUNNING SHIRT

CLOT BUSTER #StopTheClot RUNNING SHIRT Options

Follow the CLOT BUSTER on Twitter @CLOTBUSTER

Saturday, February 06, 2016

February Athlete of the Month

2016 continues to roll on in great form.

Personally we have a significant change with the addition of our 3rd child... Certainly we are VERY FORTUNATE and doing are best to figure out our new family dynamics now that the parents are our numbered.

It is not too difficult when you have a face like this to look at...

Soon enough I hope to be able to get this little on in CLOT BUSTER #StopTheClot polka-dots... probably next up we will have "performance polka-dot oncies..."

So we have reached February 2016 already... don't ask me how we got here so fast. It seems like yesterday when I was just finishing up the January post of these series.

Since the last January post a lot of things are coming together for our world of spreading the word about blood clots and to celebrate blood clot survivors. Coming up very soon we have a couple of events in which blood clot survivors are getting the word out... Please take some time to check this out...

http://www.tobaccoroadmarathon.com/ >>> Blood Clot Survivor working the NBCA - STOPTHECLOT.org booth to spread awareness and then also participating in the event to show all that Blood Clot Survivors CAN DO ANYTHING!

Speaking of Blood Clot Survivors the world of social media continues to bring us all together and allows me to meet more individuals that are overcoming the challenges from blood clots and simply going on to be an inspiration not only to me but to many people out there who are looking to battle the challenges of their own clotting episodes...

This month I would like to share with you the story that was shared with me from a clot survivor whose name is TEAGAN ANDREWS. I am Thankful that Teagan was willing to share her story with us so that we can learn more about her challenges and how she was able to overcome them.

Please read on and be inspired...

"
1) What is you sport/activity of choice? Why do you enjoy
it? Running is definitely my sport of choice!
When I was recovering from my PE and couldn't run, I took up swimming and
cycling, but given the choice I will always choose running. It’s fun, it's
social, I get to see beautiful places, I guess the only down side is the
laundry : )

2) How did you get started in that sport? I started running when I was 19, just to
relieve stress in college. I joined the track team my senior year and truly
fell in love with running

3) What is the latest milestone you achieved or plan to
achieve?

I ran my first 50k this summer, which was so
great. I ran the Forest Park 50k in Portland (where I live). It was fun running
on trails I train on all the time, and I met my goal of running sub 5:00 (and I
actually came in first for women, which was shocking and super exciting).

4) Tell about your clotting episode. Are you on
blood thinners now? How long were you out of commission? In 2011, shortly after my 26th birthday, I
noticed that it hurt to take a full breath. I thought that I pulled a muscle in
my ribs or something but it got progressively worse over the next couple of
absolutely miserable days. I had no appetite, was in a ton of pain, couldn’t
sleep, and generally just felt off. After three days of this I went in to my
PCP who ordereda chest x-ray, where he
noticed that I had fluid in my lungs. He sent me to get a CT scan immediately.
That CT scan was maybe the most painful thing I have ever experienced in my life.
Trying to breathe while lying down was pretty much torture. After the CT scan,
I was waiting there for the results (happy to be upright), when the person who
reviewed the results came in with oxygen for me and said that they ordered an
ambulance as I had “an impressive number” of blood clots in both of my lungs and also
infarctions. So. . .I got an ambulance trip (first one ever! Very exciting.)

From there, I was in the hospital for a few
days, was put on Lovenox and Warfarin, got pneumonia, and was in a lot of pain.
It was not a fun time, and I had no idea if I would ever be able to run fast again,
though I was determined to do so. The doctors told me that the blood clots
would go away eventually, but they didn’t know what would happen with the part
of my lung that died.

After I got home, I tried to stay
active. I couldn't run at all, but I could walk (very slowly) so that's what I
did. I made a chart to keep track of my progress so I wasn't as discouraged and
also tried taking up new sports (swimming and cycling) so that I wouldn’t
measure my performance against what I could do before. It was a full month before I could even try
jogging again. . .at 11-12 min/mile pace. And I’m on warfarin for life as I had
no risk factors for clotting and no one has any idea why it happened.

5) When were you able to get back into your
activity? How did it feel that first time?

As I said, it was a
full month before I could even try jogging and it was SO SLOW. My doctor said I
had to keep my heart rate at 150bpm or below for a few months, which would
normally be fine, but because of the blood clots and reduced lung capacity, it
meant I was running painfully slow compared to my normal pace. Many tears were
shed on these runs. Usually running is the time that I can let free and be
myself and decompress, but some of these runs were full of doubt and pain and
discouragement. However, I still had hope things would improve. I religiously
kept track of my progress, and over time started to see improvement. Three
months later I was down to 8-9 min/mile pace. Still not fast enough to run with
my friends, but running was feeling better and started to be fun again. I was back running
with my friends (but not doing workouts) 6 months after my PE’s.

Three years after my
PE’s I ran a 19:19 5k on the track, which was a PR for me. Since then I have
PR’d in the 10K, Half Marathon, Marathon and 50k distances.

7) How much are you getting out doing your sport?
(Every day you do some training, 2, 3, 4 times per week)

I run 5-6 days/week. I’m currently training
for a series of 50k’s next summer. I am also a weather-dependent bike commuter.

8) What is your favorite food?

I like most foods : ) I especially
like ice cream and jalapeno potato chips. Not together.

9) If you could go someplace to visit and explore, where
would you like to go?

I would love to go to Great Britain someday to
explore.

10) What would like to say to someone who is going through
a clotting episode, perhaps very similar to yours? How can people return
to do what they enjoy?

I would
tell them that things will get better and to be patient with themselves and to
listen to their bodies. I would tell them that (if they’re a somewhat serious
runner) this is not the end of their running. People can live through this and
end up a stronger runner (and person) on the other side. It’s possible to PR
again and it doesn’t have to be a “post-PE PR”, it can be a real, legitimate
PR. I would also really encourage them, especially in the first year, to keep
really close record of exactly what they do in each workout, so that even if
the progress is really miniscule and practically invisible day to day, when
they look week over week, month over month, they will see how much they are
improving.

I would also
encourage them to take up a new sport. It helped me SO MUCH to learn something
new so that I could see tangible progress forward toward goals. I did
triathlons for the first couple of years after my PE’s instead of running. This
new sport enabled me to set PR’s for which I really had no context, and kept me
pretty distracted from how long it was taking to get back into running.

And finally, I would say, be open with the important people
in your life about what you’re going through. They want to be there for you,
just like you want to be there for them when they go through difficult times."

TEAGAN's story is a clear example that ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE for Blood Clot Survivors. So much so that she is even breaking down her own barriers by getting much faster and achieving many personal bests.

There is a great deal of hope for anyone who is a survivor of blood clots and by reading stories like Teagan's they can certainly start their road to recovery.